AS always here at Looking Back we've been dreaming of a white Christmas - a magical couple of days in which we can cosy up inside after a joyful yomp through a snow-covered Dorset.
Alas, it is not to be this year with these mild temperatures of late, but back in 2010, the county experienced its heaviest snowfall for 15 years.
Click into our picture gallery above to see pictures of Dorset in the snow full-sized.
December 2, 2010 brought an early white Christmas for people in the area and caused a day of chaos on the roads and train services.
Drivers were forced to abandon their cars, with some losing control on the ice.
The major routes were gritted and cleared but minor roads remained dangerous and bus services were cancelled through the morning until conditions became safer.
Many schools remained closed and children took advantage of the rare sight of snow in south Dorset by getting their sledges out or building snowmen and playing.
Radipole Lane was closed in Southill after a lorry lost traction and got stuck in what police called ‘very thick ice’ close to the shops and the John Gregory pub.
The lorry was quickly recovered but cars were left abandoned on the side of the road on the other side of the hill close to Radipole village.
Two lorries with tanks on the back were among the vehicles to get stuck on sheet ice at Clouds Hill in Bovington.
Multiple collisions occurred as cars slid down the sheet ice on the hill but nobody was injured. The road was closed when police declared the road ‘impassable’ from Gallows Hill to the turning for Monkey World.
Nearby in School Drive in Crossways, four motorists pulled over when they also lost grip on the ice.
Problems were experienced on the A35 near Askerswell in the afternoon where drivers reported snow blowing heavily across both carriageways.
A farmer in his tractor came to the rescue of vehicles snowed in and blocking the road at Piddlehinton.
Roads were said to be hazardous around Corfe Castle and Studland, although passable with extreme care.
Two vehicles were in collision at Loders in West Dorset with both drivers escaping unhurt.
Recovery was required for a lorry stuck in Pymore Road at Bridport. Larger vehicles were unable to get through until the obstruction was cleared.
Two vehicles were in collision in Verne Hill Road on Portland. The drivers, who were not injured, abandoned their cars because of the snow.
Vehicles were reported sliding on ice at Winterborne Whitechurch while others were stuck at Winterbourne Abbas and Litton Cheney.
A gritter lorry ran into problems near Dorchester when it broke down and had to be towed to safety.
Dorchester resident Clive Cook spotted the stricken vehicle near the Kingston Maurward roundabout.
South West Trains had a reduced service with significant disruption across their network.
Trains between Wool and Weymouth were stopped during morning.
While passengers waited for trains to run they were given free tea and coffee on the platform at Weymouth.
Weatherman Bob Poots said that the snowy conditions were the worst Weymouth had seen for many years.
He said: “It’s been about 15 years since the snow was this bad. We had 5cm overnight.
“We had quite a deep snowfall in 1994-1995 but we don’t normally get snow like this.
“The two bad winters of 1947 and 1963 both had their first snow fall about November 20."
He added: “Although it’s snowing it’s not that cold. The lowest air temperature we have had was minus two degrees.
“The ground temperature has been lower, at minus five in Weymouth and minus eight in Bincombe. It has been very unseasonable weather for Dorset.”
Apart from the snowfalls of 1994-1995, the most recent bad winter had been ‘the big freeze of 1982’, which brought hurricane-strength winds and heavy snow and ice on the roads.
In 1978 Dorset was cut off from the rest of the country by the worst blizzard in 100 years.
However, the snowfall in December 1962 and January 1963 was thought by many to be worse as it left snow on the ground for 62 consecutive nights.
Before this came the great freeze-up of 1947, which led to all-day electricity cuts, and disruption to schools and public transport.
I'm wishing all Looking Back readers a happy, safe and peaceful Christmas and New Year. Thank you, as always, for your support and for your contributions that make these pages such a joy to put together every week, Jo.
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